Sewing machine



April 17, .1928.

F. W. MERRICK SEWING MACHINE Filed July 15, 1925 3- sheets-sheet lInventor:

April17, 192s.

5 F. W. MERRICK SEWING MACHINE Filed July 15, 1925 s sheets-sheet 2Inl/62112502' 7 ya ymy April 17, 1928.l 1 1,666,177

IF. w. MERRlcK SEWING MACHINE d l 5,' v v .I 3 Flle 1925 3 Sheets SheetPatented Apr. 17, 1928.l

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FICE. i i

SEWING MACHINE.

Application led July 15, 1925. Serial No. 43,685.

The invention is applicable in connection with sewing machines of awell-known general class in which a work-penetrating imlv stitch-formingoperations are being perplementthat penetrates the work at j thestitch-forming point in a machine, as an 1ncident of stitch-formingoperations, has 1n additiona transverse movement while in the workwhereby the work is advanced, i. e., fed. In machines on the order ofthose to which the invention more particularly is designed to be appliedthe work'is backed up by a work-table or support located immediatelyadjacent the stitch-forming point, the work being clamped by means of apresser 'against said work-table or' Support while formed, the pressureof the presser beingfrelieved during the feeding action.` In machinesorganized as heretofore the presser- 'foot isautomatically lifted fromthe adjoining surface of the work for and during the feeding action, butthe work and worktable or support remain in contact with each otherduring the feeding action, so that the feeding implement of strain dueto vencountered 1n moving' the work. i

advance of the work is resisted more or less `by reason of such contact,thereby imposing increased strain upon vthe feeding imple-Conseopuently,` thisV implement, be-

vment are affected. v p

The generalobjects ofthe inventionare tov provide against opposition bytheworktable'or support to the advancing movement of the work duringtheyfeeding action, and,l

through eliminatingsuch' opposition or resistan'ce, therebyto facilitatethe said move- Vment andaction, with other good results incident to`relieving the work-'penetrating f Briefly stated, the'essentialprinciple of the invention consists in employing in a *sewing machine,in conjunction with a work-penetrating and feeding implement, andwith al`movable presser engaging with one'side of the work, `and an automaticpresserlift, a

jm'ovable or reciprocating worktable or 'support for the other Vside* ofthe work, and

'i vmeans for moving theV work-table or support out of contact withthexlatterside of the work for and during the feed-movement so thatl asthe, feed-movement occurs the work remains sim' l sus ended u on thesaidim pyr pl Y resistance resulting from Contact with either the presser orthe work-.table or asupport. p

An'illustrative embodiment o f the invention is shown in the drawings,in which latter,.- f 1 Fig. l is an elevation of certain portions of asewing machine, including the said embodiment. a v

Fig.v 2 is a view Showing some. of the partsof Fig. l, looking from theleft-hand side in Fig. v F

Fig. 3 Vis a sectional view showing needle and awl carriers and certainassociated parts.V

Figs. 4, 5 and 6 are elevations'illustrating the presser mechanism rofFigs.'y 1and2,

separately, and illustrating the Yworkingy thereof. Fig. 7 is asectional detail. 'n a The machine parts Shown in the drawings include amachine-frame Yl, Figs. l and 2. w

Va cam-shaft 2, Fig. l, a curved awl 3, Figs.l

vneedle 5,-a swinging needle-carrier 51, Fig.V

3, (the actuating'connections therefor being omitted in order tosimplify lthe drawings), a needle-guard 'thatis'partly shown sin" Fig.

so 'a 3, and -ffeedemechanism which is referredv tol hereinafterbriefly. Also, a' presser 7,

` presser-locking and ylifting mechanism to .which reference is vmadelater-herein, a re ciprocating work-table `or supporty 8 andcontrolling-and operating mechanismtherefor'to whichgalso Areference 1smade herein-l s.

afterg and certain other vassociated"parts and devices. f Ak portion ofwork m is representedfin certain ofthe views of the drawings, in placebetween they work-table orsupport 8 and the i presser l awl 3 isarranged and actuated to lpenetrate from above the work m 'resting uponthel work-table 'or support-and at times clamped thereto by the presser,and thel feedingrv of` the workas successive stitchesjare vmade isaccomplished by movement of lthe awl-'car rier and awl in theldirectionof--the feed while the awl isl in the work. Y

The particular means and mode of mounting theawl-carrier andneedlefcarrier, vawlguard and needle-guard, actuating them'forvstitch-forming` 'purposes, and occasionin j 1 the feedaneweinents ofthe ami-carrier an As appears inthe drawings,fthev awl, form no portionof the present invention and need only brief reference thereto. In theillustrated instance the awl-carrier 31 is fixed upon a rocksliaft 311carried bybearing-supports 312, 313, indicated in Figs. 2 and 3 butomitted from Fig. 1, the rocksliaft having capacity for rockingmovenients to cause the awl to penetrate the work and afterward withdrawtherefrom, and also having capacity for movement back and forthlongitudinally for the purposes of the rfeed.' To give the rockingmovements to the rocksliaft 311 so as to swing the a 'flcarrier and awl,the awl-carrier 31 is connected by a klink 32 to an arm 33 of a rockerhaving its axis'fat 34 and having a second arm, 35, that is connected bya link 36 to an armi 37 of a second rocker having its axis at38'and asecond arm, 39, carrying-a canifollower 391 which works in a cam-groove392 inV a'cain-hub 393 fixed to cam-shaft 2. Asstated hereinbefore, theactuating mechanism for vthe needle-carrier and needle is not shown. InvFig. 3 the awl-guard l is sleeved lupon the rock-shaft 311 with itssleeve 11 itted to and extended through a bearing in thesupport 313,with a dished springwasher 12Vv between the body of the awlcarrierandthat of the awl-guard to act through `friction to cause' the latterto accompany thel former in the movements of the i'foimer,'and with acap-screw 13 engaged with the adjacent outer end of the rockshaft withl` its flange contacting with the correspond-ing end-of Vsleeve 11 sothat by turning the said screw the spring-washer may be causedv to'actmore -or less effectively in causing th'e awl-guard to partake of theswinging movements of the awl-carrier.l in Fig.` 3,- also, theneedle-carrier51'is shown as sleeved upon rockshaft 311, with its sleeve52 extending through support 312, and the needle-guard 6 is shown assleeved upon the exterior of said sleeve 52 ofthe needle-carrier,- withthe needle-guard sleeve 62 also extending through support 312 andfitting a bearing in said support within which itA is adapted to turn.-A Vdished spring-washer 63 isinterposed between the l body oftheneedle-carrier and that of the needle-guard to kact through frictionto cause the needle-guard to participate in the movement-s of theriieedle-earrier, and nuts (Set, 61,7.

applied to the screw-threaded outer end of needle-carrier sleeve 52 holdsaid sleeve and ments ofthe'needle-carrier, may be varied.y

Thefeed-movements are transmitted to the rocksh'aft 311through afeed-lever, 9, foriningapart of-thefeed-mechanism and Vconvenientlyengaged .with one end of said "vided, as aforesaid. K

lower end that is engaged with a hub` rookshaft. For the purposes oft-he feed the rockshaft is moved endwise while the awl is in the work,advancing the work the distance of a stitch-length, the return movenientof the rockshaft and awl taking place while the awl is disengagedv fromthe work. As the rocksliaft moves endwise, it slides through the sleeveof the needle-carrier, which does not partake of the' feed-movements,but the sleeve of the awl-giiard slides through the bearing within whichit is fitted in support 313.

The presser-mechanism in connection with which the invention is utilizedmay vary in practice. In the present instance the presser-carrier 71 ismounted to rock upon an axis at 72,'and for the purpose of moving thepresser toward the work-table or support into a position determined bythe thickness of the work resting upon the work-table or support; inother words, into a position ydetermined bythe upper surface of the saidwork, and causing the presser to cooperate with the work-table orsupport in clamping the work during the penetration of the work by theawl v3, etc., a spring 73 is coinbined with said presser-carrier. Forthe purpose of locking the presserl in clamping position that'is to say,in the said position determined by the thickness of the work, a pivotedlocking dog 10 is employed to act in combination with a segment 101carried by the presser-Carrier, and al spring 102 is arranged to actnormally upon the locking dog 10 so as to cause it to grip the segment101 and prevent the presser from movingfarther away from the wo'rk-tabieor support. Automatic release vof vthe Vpresser- Vgrip or lock so `as toleave the presser free to be lifted to provideA for each feed-move,-ineiit is'ei'ilected by means of a release-cani 103, Figs. 5 and 7,fixed upon a rockshaft 11 mounted iiithe uppei' portion of theniai'ocked chine-frame. This rockshaft is prior to each feed-iiiovement,in this instance by means of an arm 111 iixed'upon the rockshaft andconnected by a link 1.12 to arm 37 ofthe rocker actuated by means. ofcamgroove 392. For the purpose of automatically lifting the presserafter it has vbeen yunlocked, a lifting tappet'1'2 fixed upon therockshaft 11 is employed in this instance to act in conjunction with -alifting-clamp arrangement `carried by a movable arm 13 and adapted toengage with the segment 101 with which the presser-carrier is pro- Arrm13 has` a forked of the presser-Carrier that is concentric with axis72,' so as to enable the arm to swing around'the said axis. The drawingsshow a well-known lifting-clampl arrangement comprising a primarylever-member 121 with which liftingtappety 12 engages, a

lil)

segment, f and then operates to swing l carrier, whereby ed to engagewith the curved exterior surface of segment the two levers andy acting,when tappet 12 presses against primary lever-member 121, totransmit'movementto secondary levermember 122 to cause it tol grip uponthe segment 101. In the working of the parts the tappet 12l acts throughits pressure against primary lever-member 121 to close the secondarylever-member 122 upon said the continued pressure of the primary the arm13 and presserthe presser is lifted. As the reverse direction, thelever-member 122 upon and sp-ring v7 3 therethe tappet against tappet 12swings in grip of secondary segment 101 is relieved, upon acts to swingthepresser-carrier so as to depress the presser. A spring 124, Fig. 1,engaged with'the upper portion of arm13, returns such arm Itoward t-heaxis of rockshaft 11 when such return is permitted byv the returnmovement of tappet 12. f

To provide forv manual unlocking of the presserin l,case such unlockingshould becomernecessary, a second grip-release cam, 14, Figs. 2, 6 andis mounted loosely upon rockshaft 11 in position to act upon griflever10, the said cam 141:havingan` arm 1 1, Fig. 1, with whichis'engaged theupper end of a rody 15 which may be operated bythe attendant asrequired. In practice y rod usually is connected withl a treadle.

For the purpose of enabling thejpressertol be `manually lifted, inadditionl tobeing manually unlocked as justV explained,"an`arm i, 16,with which the rod 15 is connected also,

yis "articulated with the presser-carrier by a pivotal joint at 161, thesaid arm having a finger '162' which projects down alongside the lowerportion of the presser-carrier. The construction perm-its theautomaticlifting and lowering of the presser to'take place withoutbeinginterfered withI by the arm 16, but provides thatA as rod 15 ismoved downward for fthe purpose. of rocking the release-cani 14 of thepresser the finger 162 shall make contact with the presser-carrierv androck the same in the proper direction to lift the presser.

Having reference, now, to the reciprocat-L 'V ing work-table .or'support,-

For the automatic movement of theworktable or support 8 downward fromthe under surface of the work, the said work-table or support is mountedupon a swinging-carrier 81, Fig. 1, which is mountedto swingl about axis72,'the said carrier having an arm 82 which extends up into proximity toa'cam 83 s fixed upon a rockshaft 11.r A 'spring"85,

Fig. 1, engaged with saidV lever acts with a tendency to draw the arm 82toward the Vrockshaft and therebyvdepress the worktable or support. Inthe turning movement 101, and a strut 123`between `the work-table orsupport lever-member Ythe foot#lift mechanism Vbor in actuatinglpresser-foot 7., l the said in effecting manual unlocking ofrockshaft'll in one direction a high. tion of cam 83 acting againstarm-82 raises and holds Vthe. latter in elevatedposition, in effectlocked in such position, duringthe penetration of porthe work bythe awland-the formation of a Y stitch, to provide for the backing-up, ive.,support, of the ,work againstthe thrust of the awl as such 'penetrationis effected, and

other stresses communicated `to the v'work at such time, and hen in thereverse turning movementof the rockshaft av lowery portion of the cam ispresented to the said-'arm vto permit the work-table or support to Lmoveaway from the under surface ofthe work so as to providefor thefeed-movement. u l

In the action of clamping the work betweeny Dresser-member 7 andwork-table or support 8 after the presser under the impulse ofthe spring73 hasv reached theupper surface of the work x and has been locked bygrip-lever .10, the workntaloleYAY or support 8 continues c.presser-foot@ andV compresses positively the f work between'. thelower. face of presser-foot 7 and the upper surface of work-'table or'support 8. j This permits4 of 'la' positive clamping andl avoidsthefnecessity of` using a very heavy spring-'at 73. This"relieves fromunnecessary la- Asa result of dropping the worl -table or supportsimultaneously with the liftingv of the presser, the work is leftinipaledfupon,

'the awl and supported by k-th'e engagement with'the blade or stem ofthelatter, without necessary Contact of itssurfaces lwith-either thepresser orthe work-table or rsupport during the ,advance of the work inlthef-'feedy movement of the awl.

What is claimed as the invention is f -1 1. In a sewing. machine,thecombination with a work-penetrating and .feeding implement, a presserinovabletoward and from Vthe plane of the work engaging with one side anautomatic presser-lift. by Y of the work, which pressure of thepresserupon the work is relieved at time of feed-movement, Vand afg-1 'iwork-table or support for the other side of the work movable toward landfrom the plane of the. work of means acting to move the work-table orsupport out of contact with the latter` side ofthe work for andy duringthe feed-movement so that as thel latter 'i occurs the work is advancedwithout neces-v4 sary contactwith either the` presser or the' work-tableor support.

2. In a sewing machine, the combination;

work is relievedy attime of feed-movement,

with a work-penetrating and feedingimpleand a work-table, or support forthe other` nu f inl

side of the Work movable toward and from the plane of the Work of acontrolling cam for said work-table or support and means whereby saidcam is actuated to provide for the backing-up of the work during thepenetrating action of said implement and for movement of the work-tableor support away from the plane of the work to relieve the Work fromresistance due to the worktable or support during the feeding-action.

3. In a sewing machine, the combination comprising a work-penetratingand feeding implement, a work-support, a presser, means for movingl saidwork-support and said presser, respectively, toward each other to clampthe Work and hold it clamped during the penetration of the work by thesaid implement, and means for separating the worksupport and the presserindividually from the respective surfaces of the work and out of Contactwith both of said surfaces during the feed-movement of the saidimplement and the work. e

4. A sewing machine comprising in combination with a presser-foot, meansfor automatically'locking and releasing same in position determined bythickness of work, means for automatically lifting said presser-footfrom the adjacent surface of work, and a work-compressingv work-supportwhich reeiprocates towardY and from the plane of the work.

5. A sewing machine comprising` in combination with a presse1-toot,means for auto-r matically locking and releasing same in posiv tiondetermined by thickness of work, means for automatically lifting saidpresser-toot from the upper surface of the workreach time, and aWork-compressing work-support which reciprocates toward and -from themeer?? a work-support which likewise reciprocates y toward and from theplane of the work-and is locked in engagement with the work. y

7. Asewing machine comprising, in combination, a presserfoot, means forlocking it work, and mea-ns for automatically liftinglit from suchsurface, and a work-compressing `work-support which reciprocates towardand from the plane of the work.

8, A sewing machine comprising, in combination, a presser-foot, meansfor locking it in position determined by one surfaceof the work, meansfor automatically lifting Vit from such surface, a work-compressingwork`- Support which reciprocates toward and from the plane of the work,and means for locking it in normal work-supporting position.

9. A sewing machine comprising incombination with a work-penetrating andfeeding implement, a presser-foot, devices for automatically locking thepresser-foot' in position determined by thickness of work and releasingthe same, and means for automatically lifting said presser-foot from theadjacent surfaceV of the work for eachv feedmovement, a work-support,and means acting to move the work-support against the other surface ofthe work to co-act with the presser-foot in compressing the work, and tomove the work-support out of contact with such surface for and duringthe feedmove ment.

vFRANK W. MERRICK.

yin position determined by one surface of the

